Environmental Protection Agency regulations which have recently been promulgated require gasoline stations in some areas to be fitted with vapor recovery equipment. These regulations typically require the recovery of gasoline vapors previously vented to the atmosphere during two different operations. First, the regulations require the recovery of gasoline vapors displaced from an underground storage tank during filling of the tank by a drop from a tank truck. Secondly, the regulations require the recovery of gasoline vapors displaced during filling of the storage tank of a motor vehicle. A vapor recovery system designed to meet both requirements is disclosed in VAPOR RECOVERY SYSTEM FOR SERVICE STATIONS, patent application Ser. No. 538,057, filed Jan. 2, 1975, now U.S. pat. No. 3,915,205. In that system, vapors displaced from a motor vehicle fuel tank during filling are directed through an underground manifold back to the underground storage tanks. The vapors are directed to the manifold by an underground pipe which enters the ground at the gasoline dispensing console.
Although many potential dangers of this system have been recognized, one dangerous aspect which thus far has been unrecognized is the inherent danger of an open vapor recovery system in an accident wherein the dispensing console is knocked over, as by an errant automobile, and the vapor recovery pipe is severed open. An open vapor recovery system, especially during the occurence of an accident, could present a dangerous opportunity for a fire or explosion.